Virtual Reality - the next steps with Mercedes-Benz SA

23.11.2016

In a fast moving world, trends show the way and fashionable pieces are constantly at the top of every best and must buy list. As an innovative and forward thinking brand, Mercedes-Benz South Africa recently embarked on a series of exciting and progressive digital projects in the world of Virtual Reality."Our customer base is extremely broad and consist of trendsetters who seek the best at all times and want to be ahead of the mainstream in everything they do, own and purchase," says Selvin Govender, Marketing Director, Mercedes-Benz Cars. "With this in mind we had to find an innovative concept that would best capture the minds and hearts of our customers and fans, whilst taking into consideration alternative marketing campaigns in a highly competitive market," adds Govender.The latest foray into Virtual Reality with Mercedes-Benz Cars is a new concept for the launch of the latest range of Mercedes-Benz Roadsters and Cabriolets."We have come up with a creative idea using Virtual Reality that expands on our global television commercial and the popular "#LookUp" Campaign to launch the Mercedes-Benz Roadsters and Cabriolets range, with the C-Class Cabriolet as the hero vehicle. This idea is truly experiential and allows all viewers to 'feel' as if they are the protagonist of our C-Class Cabriolet television commercial, thereby taking the virtual experience to the next level using fantasy creatures similar to those in the commercial."This type of Virtual Reality campaign has not been produced by any other automotive company, and has the potential to build love for the Mercedes-Benz brand by appealing to the emotions and child-like wonder within us to our wide fan base, both young and old," says Govender.For the Roadsters and Cabriolets Virtual Reality Experience, the environment is 100% virtual reality, with no footage of actual roads or real-life. The concept is fantasy-made, while resembling a realistic world that one can experience.As a teaser to this VR, a short video was filmed in Cape Town, with three children and a dog in the back of a C-Class Cabriolet. The children were asked how it made them feel to drive in the C-Class Cabriolet. Their response was quite amazing, about how they feel and what they saw when they "Look Up" - such as "animals without feet", "feels like they're on a bubble that's flying away" etc etc. These imaginative thoughts and words were used in the VR to physically portray what they saw and express how they felt.Link to the C-Class Cabriolet children's video is: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ugbGrwy0BVsLink to view C-Coupé VR: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SBJF-EGojEMView 360 video on new E-Class on YouTube here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HwQikUZYhQM